Here’s a look back at the best stories from the second round of the state tournaments:

Payson scores a big upset win over Provo: Payson hasn’t had back-to-back winning seasons since 1970-71 until its shocking 27-21 win over Provo Friday night in the second round of the 4A playoffs.

Payson came into this game as the No. 14 seed with a 6-5 record and knocked off No. 3 seed Provo (8-3) thanks to some big-time heroics by its defense and its star player changing positions for the good of the team.

The fourth quarter was a house of horrors for Provo, which led 21-7 going into the final stanza. Payson (7-5) scored 20 straight points, two of them coming from fumble returns to really shock both sets of fans.

Brian E. Preece, Herald correspondent

Another big part of the Payson win was the unselfish decision by Lion star player Cooper Swasey to play running back for most of the game. Payson used the pistol formation lining Swasey some eight to nine yards from the line of scrimmage. Then Swasey put his athleticism to work. Early in the fourth quarter, Swasey scampered in from eight yards which sparked the Lion comeback.

“I have lots of faith in my coaches because they have great game plans, and whatever I’ve got to do, I do it,” Swasey said.

Payson advanced to the quarterfinals of the playoffs for the first time since 1986, but with the expanded format, the Lions had to win two games this season to get that far. And Swasey, who also had an interception thwarting a Bulldog scoring threat in the opening quarter, enjoys proving the doubters wrong.

“No matter what, every single time we play, people think we can’t do it,” Swasey said. “But I think we’re going to prove them wrong.”

Payson now moves to take on another big challenge, traveling north to Cache Valley to take on No. 6 seed Ridgeline (9-2). Ridgeline is a relatively new school opening its doors to students in 2016, but in 2021 the Riverhawks went undefeated claiming the 4A state title.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

For Provo, it was another excruciating loss in the second round of the playoffs. For the third straight season, Provo lost at home in this particular round. And it was the fifth time in six seasons where the Bulldog season ended on their home turf in the playoffs.

“I can’t lie. Losing this game was really disappointing,” Provo head coach Kirk Chambers said.

Much like Payson, Provo has had its share of futility on the gridiron. But a decade ago, the school hired Tony McGeary and then Kirk Chambers and the Bulldogs put together eight winning seasons in a nine-year span with two region titles.

As Payson punched through, reaching the quarterfinals for the first time in 37 seasons, Provo reached the quarterfinals in 2019 and 2006. But even then, Provo managed to lose those games on its home field to Timpview and Box Elder respectively. The last time Provo made the semifinals was in 1999 after it crushed Cyprus, 48-13.

Region 3 dominates in 6A: It wasn’t fully unexpected that Region 3 put five of the eight teams in the 6A quarterfinals. All total, this league is 6-1 so far in the playoffs.

Darnell Dickson, Daily Herald

One could call No. 10 Lone Peak (5-6) beating No. 7 Mountain Ridge (7-3) 14-3 an upset not only because of the seeding positions, but the fact the Sentinels defeated Lone Peak 31-17 earlier in the season.

This time around the Knight defense was extra stout and no team in the state intercepts the opposing quarterback better than Lone Peak, which had four picks in this game and two by Matthias Nawahine. Brooks Wilde and Trey Robinson provided the touchdowns for Lone Peak to advance to play No. 2 seed Corner Canyon (10-1).

Returning 6A champs and No. 4 seed Skyridge (9-2) had no issues dispatching No. 13 seed Farmington (2-8), 49-14. Falcon senior quarterback Jackson Stevens tossed for three scores and ran in another while teammate Brett Buhler had two rushing scores.

No. 3 seed Lehi posted a 31-0 shutout of No. 14 seed Riverton (1-9). Gavin Fenn’s booming 55-yard field goal opened up the Pioneer scoring. Jett Niu tossed three touchdown passes and Boston Fabrizio ended the Pioneer scoring with a thrilling 70-yard pick six. Lehi will now face No. 6 seed Davis (10-1). The Pioneers gave the Darts their only loss in week one, 28-14.

It was a bit of a struggle but No. 5 seed Pleasant Grove bested No. 12 seed Herriman (5-6), 21-17. The Mustangs led 17-14 going into the final stanza but Carson Rasmussen’s 2-yard run, his second score of the game, delivered the victory.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

Now the Vikings will go on the road to battle No. 4 Skyridge. Pleasant Grove (9-2) earned a riveting 34-31 overtime road victory over the Falcons in the regular season, so Skyridge is looking for revenge.

6A top seed American Fork (10-1) played a familiar foe in fellow Region 3 rival and No. 17 seed Westlake (2-9), winning 41-13. Jacob Eardley had two touchdown runs for the Cavemen, while Dylan Story threw three touchdown passes. The Cavemen will now host No. 8 seed Bingham (6-5). In an earlier regular season meeting, American Fork blanked the Miners, 28-0.

5A top seed Timpview survives scare from rival Orem while No. 2 Springville rolls: Orem (5-7) showed that their No. 17 seed was a bit low giving Timpview all it could handle. The Thunderbirds did prevail 35-28 in a designated home playoff game played at Provo High’s former campus, the property now owned by BYU.

Timpview took command early scoring the first three touchdowns of the game and led 28-7 at half. Sophomore quarterback Helaman Casuga had four touchdown passes. But Orem showed some fight and pulled within seven points with four minutes remaining in the final stanza when Tiger running back Mack Hixson scored his second touchdown of the night.

Things won’t get any easier for Timpview as they now will play No. 8 seed Brighton (8-3), who eased to a 44-7 win over No. 9 seed Woods Cross (7-5). Game site still to be determined as the Thunderbirds could again use this site or move over to Provo’s new campus for its next designated home playoff game as their own campus is still under construction.

No. 2 seed Springville (9-2) shut down No. 18 seed East (5-6), 24-0. Tevita Valeti continues to be a scoring machine as he tallied two more touchdowns. He now has 27 touchdowns on the season. Valeti’s younger brother Lisiate also had a touchdown run and Lukas Franks kicked a field goal.

The Red Devils will now host No. 7 seed Bountiful.

Timpanogos tallies victory while Maple Mountain and Salem Hills bow out of the playoffs: No. 5 seed Timpanogos (9-2) advanced to the 4A quarterfinals as the Timberwolves whipped No. 11 seed Mountain Crest (6-6), 34-18. Running back Easton Bretzing ran for two scores and tossed another to teammate Luke Livingston on a trick play. Meanwhile, quarterback Chase Riggs tossed for two scores himself.

Timpanogos will go on the road to face No. 4 seed Park City (10-1). The Miners beat Timpanogos in a thrilling 35-33 game in the second week of the season. Park City had a strong performance itself in the second round, downing No. 13 seed Dixie (5-7), 36-14.

No. 13 seed Maple Mountain (6-6) played No. 4 seed Box Elder (9-2) really tough in Brigham City, losing 28-21. Box Elder broke a 21-21 deadlock with just over two minutes remaining to advance in the 5A playoffs. Banks Jackson tossed for two touchdowns for the Golden Eagles in a losing effort.

No. 9 seed Salem Hills (8-4) couldn’t get much offense going in its game against stingy Green Canyon (8-3), the No. 8 seed in the 4A playoffs. Ashton Hansen nailed a 24-yard field goal as the Skyhawks actually led 3-0 at half. But the Wolves scored twice in the second half to win, 12-3.

Extra points: The 4A tournament has been especially plagued with teams playing teams from the same region. In the first round, out of eight possessive match-ups, five were intra-region affairs. In the second round there were still plenty of games pitting teams from the same league against each other. Out of another possible eight match-ups, there were four games where this happened. In two contests, the loser in the regular season match-up prevailed in the rematch. The two cases were No. 10 seed Desert Hills (7-4) knocking off No. 7 seed Snow Canyon (7-4) 49-33, and the aforementioned Payson defeat of Provo. In the 5A and 6A, there were three and two region vs. own region contests respectively and the winners in the first game prevailed again, save Alta that defeated West this time around. But it was sad to see Timpview play Orem this early in the tournament.

In 5A, Region 4 has been wiped out of the playoffs. No. 13 seed West Jordan (6-6) bowed out to No. 4 seed Olympus (7-3) 35-6, while Granger (7-4), the No. 7 seed and league champion, was crushed at home by No. 10 seed Bountiful (8-4), 42-0 … So far the 1A, 1A-8 player, and 3A have been completely chalk with the higher seeds winning. 2A and 6A have seen two lower seeds win games, one being a thriller as 2A No. 5 seed Summit Academy (7-4) defeated No. 4 seed Emery (6-4), 45-44 in overtime … 8-player football can feature some high scoring games and Altamont defeated St. Joseph 92-33 this past week … San Juan (10-0) extended its winning streak to 35 games as it crushed Judge Memorial (3-8), 68-0. It was the seventh time San Juan has broken the 60-point barrier this season, and the Broncos have done that now four games in a row … Three teams remain unbeaten with San Juan (2A), Richfield (3A) and Sky View (4A) … Utah County teams went 6-2 against teams outside the valley this past week and now are an impressive 52-29 overall.